guest post: the best thing amy ever ate

(this week is beyond busy for me, so i won’t be around much. however, i am delighted to share with you the thoughts of some fantastic ottawa women. these ladies know a thing or two about food in the area. first up is the incredible amy. amy boughner is a new mom, blogger and political junkie. (editor’s note: not to mention a wonderful cheerleader for things she believes in!) she writes her heart out at amyboughner.ca and tweets as @amyboughner. take it away, amy!)

a visual representation of the best thing amy ever ate (via epicurious)

I love the Food Network. I don’t like the actual cooking shows, mind you, but the cooking competition shows and the shows about food I find fascinating. When we got rid of cable it was one of the things I knew I would miss. And one of the shows I miss the most is The Best Thing I Ever Ate.

Each episode of The Best Thing I Ever Ate is about one type of food (sandwiches, dessert, etc) and a series of celebrity chefs talks about the best of that food they ever had. They visit the restaurant, talk to the chefs, and tell the audience everything they love about that particular food.

I got to thinking about the best thing I ever ate in Ottawa. I am not a gourmet by any means, I can cook but I’m not a chef, I like to eat but I don’t go to high end restaurants where they serve tiny amounts of food on fancy plates. When my husband took me to The Black Tomato for the first time I was a bit scared of the menu, but we both decided on an entrée and then we decided to split their Lime Chicken and Avocado Salad.

I didn’t enjoy whatever it was that I ordered for a main course, but that salad was unforgettable. Grilled chicken with a hint of lime flavour, wonderful greens, ripe plum tomatoes, corn chips for crunch, a wonderfully creamy and light avocado dressing.

I never expected to love a salad this much. I have never been good at eating vegetables, and for me to crave a salad – to really not being able to think about this salad without craving one – is a saying a lot. The mix of flavours, the crunch and the freshness. It’s a beautiful salad. The kind of dish that you recommend to people when they tell you they’re visiting your favourite restaurant.

When it’s a special occasion and we’re going out for a nice dinner, this is the meal I want. We’ve spent our first two anniversaries at the Black Tomato.

And it doesn’t hurt that the Black Tomato is right down the street from another place for great Ottawa food, where I can get one of the best desserts I ever ate. (The Raspberry Vanilla Charlotte at Oh So Good!)